Monument to dead child stolen from Telfair Street

A bronze sculpture erected in memory of a child who died 30 years ago was stolen this weekend. The sculpture behind the old Academy of Richmond County depicted a child in a mother's embrace and was placed there in memory of Alice Paine.

The statue, just under 3 feet tall, sat on a pedestal of pink granite that was knocked over when the disappearance was discovered.

Alice was 2 years old when she was diagnosed with a crippling genetic disorder in 1977. She died in 1980.

Friends of her parents, Kate and Trav Paine, decided to place the memorial in the 500 block of Telfair Street as a tribute to the Paine family and the love that bound them together in good times and bad, according to an e-mail from Trav Paine.

The statue disappeared between 9 a.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Monday, according to the Richmond County Sheriff's Office.

The statue is valued at $5,000 and is just under 3 feet tall; it sat on a pedestal of pink granite that raised the total height to about 6 feet 6 inches. The pedestal had been knocked over when the disappearance was discovered, the sheriff's office said.

"We still cannot believe that anyone would really steal a monument that meant so much to so many," Paine said.

The sculpture was created by renowned artist Marshall Daugherty, who struggled at first with the concept of memorializing a dying child. Daugherty finally settled on the image of a mother holding up a laughing child.

Wrote Daugherty: "This sculpture carries a message of love, tenderness, self-sacrifice and joy. It speaks of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity and of the special relationship between mother and daughter."

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TAX USERS don't give a rip what the taxpayers lose. Look at the $25,000 stolen from the courthouse? Steven Kendrick hasn't even filed for the insurance to replace it to prevent them investigating why he didn't deposit the money in the Brinks truck we pay to come around every day for it before it disappeared from his wide open safe. The city won't even tell the GBI it was stolen. It is a FELONY to refuse to report crime involving a public official thus making the City of Augusta complicit in the crime. Look how long they covered for their crack dealing meter reader?

PS i have a hunch i know who did it. He just started showing up walking downtown again and LOTS of stuff is going to disapear. You aint seen NOTHIN yet...If i had a search warrent i think i might even know where he took it, not far from where it was stolen. Then he's going to sell it to someone from somewhere else that either doesn't know it's stolen or doesn't care. It's not as easy to sell to recycling places as before.

It is amazing to me what some people post on this wall. This article is about a statue of a precious child that died. Nothing else. It is sad that someone will steal something like this. I hope they find out who did this.

Sadly, all the reporting of shady goings on doesn't comfort the parents of Alice. There's much we don't understand in this mean world. However, not all people are mean and I'm thankful for the good people left here. God really does sort it out. Perhaps it's not in the time we'd like it to be done, but it's NOT about our wishes. Many sacrifice with heart and hands so that others may take and use it for a disadvantage to those that provide. Vengeance doesn't really help, but it's okay to stop giving and doing for those that devastate the heart of the matter.

For those who might say this has nothing to do with the article...that's fine. It does to me; it has to do with the cruelest and cold people not just taking from others, but then criticizing those who are hurting or comforting those that hurt. I just have to keep on praying for the mean spirited.

The mean-spirited thieves would have volumes to say if this were their property. Hope they find the derelicts and throw the book at them. Unfortunately, the law probably considers this a minor crime, so at best, the thieves may just get a slap on the wrist...however, they need to know that the community has a very low opinion of them.